The Strike Before Christmas
by ThE fLoWeR cHiLd Of ThE 6o'S
Summary: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer saved Christmas. Now he can sit back and relax, right? Wrong. Being a part of Santa's team means nonstop training, doing crazy exercises that Santa himself devised. No breaks, no holidays. And Rudolph is sick of it.


**Hey everyone! This is a story I had to write for English class, and I really enjoyed it, so I hope you do! For those of you who read my other stories, I'm sorry I haven't updated. I've been so busy with schoolwork, and making earrings for a craft fair! I don't have any time anymore. Blah. I promise to try and update soon though ;) Until then, enjoy my Christmas story, you crazy authors!

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The Strike Before Christmas

_The workshop was bustling with activity. Elves finishing last-minute projects, reindeer helping to load the sleigh, the Abominable Snowman putting a star on the top of the tree. The floor was littered with wrapping paper, ribbon bows, and packing tape, but no one seemed to mind. It was Christmas Eve, and everyone was excited. _

_All except one._

_A chubby man trudged into the room, looking downcast. Even his fluffy white beard didn't look so bright tonight. He cleared his throat. "Quiet, everyone," he said loudly. "Quiet, please."_

_Everyone turned to look at the man, and the room fell silent. "I've got some bad news, folks," he said. He took a deep breath. "Christmas is going to be cancelled."_

_Gasps of shock rang through the room._

"_There's nothing I can do," said the man miserably. "This weather - I can't -"_

_His face was suddenly bathed in a red glow. "Rudolph - Rudolph, please, could you tone it down a bit?" he complained, blocking his eyes. "That nose of yours -" he froze, staring at the young reindeer. "That - nose!" he whispered. "That beautiful, wonderful nose!"_

"_Huh?" Rudolph was confused. _

"_That nose will cut through the murkiest fog there is!" Santa looked Rudolph straight in the eye. "Rudolph, with your nose so bright, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"_

_The room was so silent that you could hear a pin drop. Rudolph hesitated. Then he looked up and said, "It will be an honor, sir."_

That was the worst decision he had ever made.

A shrill whistle slashed through his memory. "Rudolph!" yelled Santa "Stop standing there like a snowman and get into the sky! Your break isn't for another four hours!"

"I'm going, I'm going!" snapped Rudolph. He kicked off from the ground and soared into the clouds, steaming with anger. All Santa did these days - no, _years_ - was order the reindeer around and make them do ridiculously hard exercises, starting at seven o'clock sharp The team flew laps around the North Pole. They sprinted through an obstacle course filled with frozen solid snow hills, patches of black ice, and sharp icicles. They dragged insanely heavy objects across a patch of ice and prayed to God not to fall. Their only break was at noon for lunch, and it was ten minutes long. Then it was back to holly jolly boot camp until nine at night.

Rudolph had no idea what he was getting into when he agreed to pull that sleigh. He had been blinded by the honor of leading Santa around the world and gaining respect from all the other reindeer. And becoming a hero. Especially that. He didn't realize that becoming a member of the team meant busting his butt every day while Santa screamed, blew his whistle, and ate Mrs. Claus's freshly-baked cookies in front of them.

CRASH! Rudolph had been so preoccupied with his anger that he accidentally rammed into Prancer. They free-fell through the air and landed on their sides at Santa's feet.

"OW!" they yelled. Rudolph knew what was coming next. He wished he could block his ears.

_TWEEEET! _Santa puffed into his whistle. "What are you two jelly-legs doing?" he roared. "Why can't you fly like Dasher? Look at him!"

Rudolph and Prancer got to their feet and looked up. They saw six reindeer flying in a line around the North Pole, when suddenly a brownish blur raced passed all of them and disappeared. Rudolph groaned. Dasher was such a show-off.

"Why fly fast when you can prance?" said Prancer. He started strutting around Santa, flashing him a grin.

"I'm not playing this game today, Prancer!" snapped Santa. "Get back up there and fly _properly,_ or I'll_-_"

"Yeah, yeah, you'll throw me off the team, you'll throw me into the ocean, you'll throw me into a snowman; we've been through this before! Keep your beard on!" Prancer rolled his eyes, kicked off from the ground, and joined the team. Rudolph was about to follow when Santa grabbed his antler.

"Rudolph, this is the second time in five minutes that you've lost concentration," he growled. "And this time it almost injured another reindeer. Get your head in the game _now_, or else -"

"I KNOW!" yelled Rudolph, and he followed Prancer into the sky.

By the time lunch break came, Rudolph was exhausted. He staggered into the stables with the other reindeer while Santa dumped their lunchboxes onto the floor. He gave them all the evil eye. "Remember, ten minutes!" he snapped, and stomped out of the barn.

As soon as Santa was out of earshot, the team started cursing and abusing him.

"He laughed at me when I slipped on the ice!" wailed Vixen.

"He wouldn't let me prance!" complained Prancer.

"He liked me," announced Dasher loftily.

"SHUT UP!"

Rudolph didn't join in, just ate his lunch as fast as he could. Comet came over and sat next to him. "I don't get how Dasher gets to be the fast one. I'm Comet. I should be faster than everyone!" he exclaimed.

Rudolph didn't answer.

"Rudolph? Are you okay?" Comet stared at him. "You're quiet today. Usually you're abusing Santa just like the rest of us!"

"I'm sick of this!" Rudolph burst out. "Santa thinks that he can do whatever he wants with us just because we're on the team. The other reindeer aren't subjected to this!"

"Yeah, well, they didn't sign up for it," mumbled Comet.

"Neither did I!" snapped Rudolph. His nose flickered alongside his anger. "We don't have breaks, we don't have days off, we have to watch Santa eat cookies while we stab our hooves with hidden icicles -"

The door crashed open. "ATTENTION!"

The reindeer dropped their food and lined up. Santa pointed to each reindeer as he said their name.

"Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder, Blitzen, Rudolph." He made a note on his clipboard and marched out. "LET'S GO, TEAM!"

Groaning and grumbling, the reindeer followed. Dasher shot ahead of everyone else. Dancer tapped a beat on the ice with his hooves as he walked. Prancer…well, pranced. Comet tried to race ahead like Dasher, but tripped over Vixen's legs and crashed into Cupid. Blitzen and Donder jumped out of the way and careened into Rudolph.

"YOU IDIOTS!" screamed Santa. "QUIT PLAYING AROUND!"

"Sorry!" everyone yelled. Well, everyone except Dasher, who had ran ahead. And everyone knew that Dasher wouldn't be sorry anyway.

"Now, everyone get on the obstacle course!" Santa pulled up a chair and sat his fat butt in it. "Yes, I said everyone! Let's see who can get the fastest time without falling down! If you fall down, you're disqualified! No exceptions!"

"But, Santa - if we all go at once, someone will get hurt!" Rudolph protested.

"DO NOT QUESTION MY ORDERS!" he roared. "READY…SET…GO!"

Everyone pelted forward, pushing to get in front. Dasher took the lead almost immediately, but stepped on a sharp icicle and collapsed. Comet passed him and shouted with glee, but ran into a giant snow mound and fell to the ground, stunned.

Everyone else was still running in a pack, pushing and shoving each other. Vixen, the smallest reindeer, was being propelled in every direction at once, until he finally tripped. The rest of the reindeer tried to stop, but they'd been going so fast that they plowed right into him. Vixen screeched in pain.

"STOP!" cried Rudolph. He rushed over to Vixen, who was laying on the ground, whimpering. One of his front legs was bent at an awkward angle.

"SANTA! VIXEN IS INJURED!" Rudolph yelled, feeling sick. He knew this would happen.

Santa actually ran over to the scene. He picked up Vixen and gently stroked his leg. The reindeer cried out in pain.

"Don't you animals know how to run?" he bellowed. "How can you not notice Vixen tripping? Now he has a broken leg!"

Rudolph snapped. "And who's fault is that?" he roared. "YOU'RE the one who organized this exercise! You should've known what was going to happen!"

"How was I supposed to know that none of my reindeer can run?" Santa countered.

"Hey, I can run!" Dasher protested.

"SHUT UP!"

Rudolph stamped his hoof. "That's it," he growled. "I've had enough of this stupid training program. We don't get holidays or breaks, training is way too hard, and now you've just proved how dangerous it can be! There's only one thing for me to do now!"

Everyone was staring at him with a mixture of fear, shock, and awe. Even Santa was lost for words.

"I'm going on strike!" Rudolph announced. "I'm going on strike until you fix this crazy training program and stop treating all the reindeer like yellow snow!"

The silence that followed was deafening. Santa's mouth had dropped open, and for once he forgot to show anger.

"But…but…what about Christmas?" he stammered, his composure lost. "It's two weeks away! What if there's a fog? Who's going to lead the sleigh?"

"That's your problem." Rudolph turned around and started to walk away. "Until you change your ways, I'm no longer a part of this team!"

Rudolph felt nine pairs of eyes burning into the back of his neck as he left. Hot with embarrassment, he picked up speed and launched himself into the clouds, his head spinning with the shock and guilt at what he had just done. He hadn't planned on ever breaking from the team, despite anything he'd ever said about Santa and his ridiculous exercises. But when he'd seen Vixen hurt, all the pain and fury that had accumulated over the years just burst out, like a balloon popping from too much helium. Had he done the right thing? He had just contradicted Santa Claus, his coach, his boss! What if Santa never changed his ways? Would Rudolph ever be let back on the team? And what did the other reindeer think? Did they approve of his choice, or hate him for jeopardizing their journey on Christmas Eve?

Rudolph was starting to feel dizzy from his thoughts. He ducked down beneath the blanket of clouds and landed on one of the smaller islands in the North Pole. He just wanted to be alone.

(o:/o (o:/o (o:/o

Santa trudged into his room, dripping melted slush everywhere. He kicked off his boots and left them in the middle of the floor, dropping his coat and hat on top of them. Sinking onto his bed, he reached into a pot on his nightstand, pulled out a giant sugar cookie, and started to eat.

While he chomped on the cookie, he thought about Rudolph. At first, he had been shocked when the reindeer declared that he was going on strike. Then angry. But now, all he felt was guilt and grief.

What kind of person had he become? He was supposed to be holly and jolly, and wish a Merry Christmas to all! And "all" included his wife, his elves, and especially his team. Without the reindeer he would never make it across the globe, never deliver the presents to all the good little children, never get his free cookies and milk. Now he realized why some families left carrots or celery for the reindeer. They worked hard, and deserved a treat once and a while.

And Vixen! Poor, poor Vixen! Because of his own stupidity, one of his best reindeer was injured. He might not be well in time for Christmas! Even if Rudolph hadn't gone on strike, Santa had still put his journey, his job, his whole reason for existence, in jeopardy.

Santa stood up, his face set with determination. He shoved his feet into his boots, pulled on his coat, chewed the rest of his cookie, and was just about to leave the room when the door opened. His wife entered the room, holding a plate of freshly-baked sugar cookies.

"Santa!" cried Mrs. Claus, almost dropping the tray. "My, you gave me quite a fright! What are you doing in here? Are you okay?" she added, staring at his face. "You look…different."

"I'm fine." Santa took the tray from her and walked out the door. "I'm making some changes around here."

(o=K (o=K (o=K

Rudolph stepped back, grinning. He had spent the last hour carving a mural into the snow on the little island. It was mostly Christmas stuff, but there were some cartoon stick figures jumping off of and onto different things, too.

Suddenly he heard a thump behind him. He whirled around, his heart pumping. "Comet! What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," said Comet, kicking snow off his back hooves. "Santa -" he broke off, staring over Rudolph's shoulder. "Uh - What's that?"

"What?" Rudolph turned around, and his nose lit up in embarrassment. "Oh - um - nothing."

Comet padded over and stared at a group of stick figures jumping into the jaws of the kraken. "Dude, did you seriously draw -?"

"Never mind that, what about Santa?" snapped Rudolph impatiently.

"Oh - right. Well, he sent me to find you. He said he needs to talk with you." Comet brushed the ground with his hoof uneasily.

"Is it an order?" Rudolph asked.

"I don't know." Comet looked up at Rudolph with confusion. "He never said it was an order, but…well, he wasn't yelling or anything, so that's a good sign."

"Okay, fine. I'll go see him, then." Rudolph poised to leap into the air, but Comet cleared his throat.

"Are you - um - just gonna leave these lovely pictures here for all eyes to see?" he said casually, smirking.

"Of course! They're works of art!" exclaimed Rudolph. "And believe it or not, I'm very proud of them."

The two reindeer took off into the sky and raced back to the training grounds. When they landed, they noticed Santa waiting there with the rest of the team. What really boggled Rudolph's mind was that he was actually standing instead of sitting in his chair. And he was holding a tray of fresh sugar cookies, but wasn't eating them. The sharp winter breeze sent the aroma dancing into Rudolph's nose, and his mouth began to water.

"Ah, good, you're here," said Santa. He paused, and Rudolph noticed that he hadn't screamed.

"You wanted to speak with me in front of the whole team?" said Rudolph cautiously.

"Yes, Rudolph," sighed Santa. "I feel that the team deserves to hear what I have to say." He paused, and took a deep breath.

_He's probably going to banish me from the North Pole,_ thought Rudolph. But Santa's next words were completely unexpected.

"Rudolph, you were right."

The reindeer gasped. Rudolph was so surprised that he yelped, "Huh?"

Santa waited for the noise to die down, and continued. "You were right. I was pushing my team too hard. And I am ashamed that it took a severe injury to make me realize what I was doing."

Everyone turned to look at Vixen, who stood in the center of the group, his bad leg lifted off the ground by a cast. Then Santa spoke again.

"I have made some new decisions about training," he began. "First, all reindeer training will start at 9 AM. Lunch period will be extended to thirty minutes. Training will end at 3 PM."

The reindeer were stunned, Rudolph especially. Was Santa really changing his ways?

"Second, all reindeer will get weekends off, as well as holidays. Excluding Christmas Eve, of course."

Everyone cheered and whistled, stamping their hooves into the snow.

"Third, all exercises will be changed for health and safety reasons, and the obstacle course will be completely rebuilt."

The cheering was so loud now that Rudolph could barely hear himself think. When everyone had finally quieted down, Santa began again.

"I have decided that in order to build the new course, I need the help of a reindeer. After all, it is reindeer who will be training with it." He paused. There was no trace of anger in his expression as he turned to Rudolph. "Rudolph," he announced, "would you oversee the renovations? That is," he added, his eyes twinkling, "if you decide to come back to the team."

The other reindeer turned to stare at Rudolph. His mind was buzzing with a mixture of panic and excitement. Could he really help Santa build a suitable obstacle course? Were these terms acceptable enough to rejoin the team? He looked up.

"It will be an honor, sir," he announced.

The rest of the team cheered, jumping up and down and stamping their hooves. Santa smiled and began to laugh.

"Ho, ho, ho!" he boomed. "Well, then, I think I know what I need to do next!"

The reindeer quieted down, waiting. Santa smiled even wider and cried, "Thank my wonderful team with a big platter of cookies!"

"YAHOOO!" yelled the team, and Santa came around passing out the treats. When he got to Rudolph, he said, "Thank you for coming back to the team, and making me realize what I have to do."

"Your welcome, Santa." Rudolph puffed out his chest. "I'll do my best to make the obstacle course safe!"

The next two weeks were the best ever. Rudolph and Santa constructed an obstacle course that was twice the size of the first one, so all the reindeer could race at once without getting hurt. There were snow hills that weren't frozen solid, snowmen, holly bushes, and some ice patches, but rough ice that was easier to race on than black ice. Vixen's leg improved just in time for Christmas Eve. Once again, Rudolph led the team around the world, and this time, he felt proud of his job, his team, and his boss, Santa Claus.

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The sound of sleigh bells woke the little girl. She jumped up and rushed to her window, peering out in excitement.

The sky was black and full of twinkling stars. Disappointed, the girl was about to go back to her bed when she noticed a tiny red light flashing in the distance. It passed in front of the moon, revealing a silhouette of nine reindeer pulling a sleigh. The red light blinked and was gone, and the sound of the sleigh bells disappeared.

"Merry Christmas," whispered the girl.

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**Didja like? Hmmm? Please review! I hope you people like Christmas as much as I do! Haha! I had lots of fun writing this! Tell me what you think!**


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